Rail-joint.



C. G. LAMB.

RAIL 10m. APPLICATION FILED FEB. 19, I913- RENEWED JAN. 211915.

Patented June 29, 1915.

m m 7% 1 m r/// W. 1 z 6 H 1 Z 1 a I 1 a w w h a y Patented June 29, 1915.

C C. LAMB.

RAIL JOINT. APPLICATION FILED FEB. 19, 1913. RENEWED JAN. 2. 1915.

THE NORRIS PETERS CO" PHOTO SHINGTUN. D. C

WW I g II! I |f!\ UH I MV I J 5 Q m iw /M NN w% mm! I m 1 I M 2f R N k} f d PATENT @FFTQE.

CHARLES CALVERT LAMB, or CHICAGO, ILLINoIs, nssrenon or ONE-HALF T0 WILLARD M. MCEWEN, or onroneo, ILLINOIS.

BAIL-JOINT.

ianne.

s ecificati n f Letters Patent Patented June .29, 1915.-

Application filed February 19,1913, Serial No. 749,334. Renewed January 2, 1915. Serial No. 254.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES CALVERT LAMB, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rail- Joints; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to rail joints of that kind consisting of a joint bar which rests on the ties and is adapted to support the meeting ends of the rails, and is provided with means by whichthe ends of the rails are secured thereto and held rigidly in alinement with each other, and it includes, as one feature thereof, improved features of construction in means for rigidly and securely holding the meeting ends of the rails in engagement with the joint bar, and as another-feature thereof',means associated with the j oint bar for holding the rail joint and rails from movement or displacement in a horizontal direction.

Oneof the objects of the invention is to provide in connection with a one-piece joint bar having longitudinal, side'members extending at opposite sides of the rails, means operating with a wedge action for tightly and securely clamping the ends of therails in engagement with the joint bar,and another object of'the inventionis to provide anchoring means separate from, or independent of, the ties, for preventing horizon tal shifting ofthe rail joint, therails and the ties, such as is liable to occur through the endwise movement of creeping of the track under the action of the passing trains on grades or inclines, or through the tendency to sidewise shifting of the rails under the action of passing trains on curved parts of the track.

The invention consists in the matters hereinafter described and pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating my invention Figure 1 is a perspective view of a rail joint embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a view of the joint, partially in elevation and partially in vertical section, taken upon line 2--2 of Fig. eg Fig. 3 isa horizontal section taken upon line 3-3 of Fig. t; Fig. 4t is a transverse section of the oint, taken upon line 44 of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a cross sectional view of the joint, taken upon line 5-5 of Fig. 2; Fig. 6 is a side view of the anchor separate from other parts.

As shown in the accompanying drawings, the meeting ends of the track rails 5, 5 are supported and held in and by a one-piece ]OlI1tb2lT, consisting of a horizontal base plate 6 and longitudinally extending side members 7 and 8, which rise from the base plate at opposite sides of the rail-ends. The baseplate 6 is adapted to rest on two adjacent ties 9 and 10, and is provided in its central part with a central, longitudinal, depending, stiffening web 11 having, at its lower margin, outwardly extending horizontal flanges 12, 12. The vertical web 11 and the stiffening flanges 12 are joined to each other and to the base plate by transverse, vertical webs 1a, 15, 15, of which the web 14 is located midway between the ends of the web 11 and the flanges 15, 15 are located at the ends of the web and adjacent to the ties. The longitudinal web 11, the transverse webs 14, 15, and 15 and horizontal flanges 12, 12 are made integral with the base plate and together constitute a girder by which the base-plate is stiffened in its part be tween the ties to prevent downward flexure thereof under downward pressure of the car wheels on the meeting ends of the rails. Adjacent to its ends, exterior to the ties, the base plate 6 is provided with depending transverse webs 16, 1 6 and with central, longitudinally extending flange members 17 joining the same with the end portions of the base plate which extend beyond the said transverse webs 16, 16.

The longitudinal side members 7 and 8 of the joint bar are arranged to extend inwardly over the base flanges of the rail and then upwardly adjacent to, and parallel with, the webs of said rails, their upper margins being located adjacent to or in contact with the under surfaces of the railheads. The side member 7 is provided with a central, transverse flange 7 and with transverse flanges 7 7 at its ends; said flanges being joined to the inwardly and upwardly extending parts of said side-piece, and acting to stiffen the same in a manner to prevent fleXure of said parts relatively to each other. The side member 8 is provided with like stiflening flanges 8 and 8"", 8

In the case ofone of the side members 7', the inwardly and downwardly. facing sun faces 7", 7' thereof are shaped to conform to the adjacent outwardly and upwardly facing surfaces of the web and base flanges of the rails, and have bearing contact with said surfaces when the rail-ends are in .place in the joint bar. longitudinal member 8, the inwardly and downwardly facing surfaces 8, 8 thereof are spacedfrom the adjacent surfaces ofthe webs, and base flanges of the rails and said inwardly and downwardly facing surfaces 8 and 8 are inclined from end to end of the side members, so as to leave tapered spaces between the said member 8 and the adjacent surfaces of the base flanges and webs of the rails. the ends of the rails is .a wedge piece 18, which is made generally of L-shape in cross section and consists of a base member 18 and an upright member 18 which are made in one piece or integral with each other. Both the base member 18 and the upright member 18 of said wed e aiece are ta aered from endto end, the tapered form beinggiven to such parts by making their upwardly and outwardly facing surfaces inclined to corre-. .spond with the inclined downwardly and inwardly facing surfaces of the member 8. The said longitudinal side members 7 and 8 of the joint bar are made substantially shorter than the length of the bar itself and preferably only slightly longer than the distance between the ties on which the joint bar is supported. The wedge member 18 is made slightly longer than the sidemember 8 engaged thereby and is provided at its thicker end with a transverse arm 19, which extends outwardly from the outer margin of the base member 18 over the top surface of the base plate and projects beyond the outer lateral margin of said base plate. By preference, the said arm 19 is made integral with the wedge member and is extended over thetop of the base member 18 inwardly to the upright member 18. The lower surface of said arm 19, in its part ex- .terior to the base member 18 and the side margin of the base flange of the rail, is

shaped to conform to and is adapted to rest or bear agalnst the marginal portlon of the top surface of the base-plate. In the outer I end of said arm is formed a spike hole 19*.

Said arm 19 thus arran ed is ada )ted to 7 b 7 come over or above the tie 9 and when the wedge member is inserted in place a spike, as indicated by 20, is inserted through the spike hole 19 and driven into the tie so as to securely hold the wedge-member from endwise movement. The spike thus driven through the arm 19 serves not onlyto hold In the case of the other Inserted between said member 8 and "2:1, 21, 21 are driven in'tothe ties 9 and 10 with their heads engaged with the side margins of the end portions of the base plate.

As a means,additional to the wedge member, for securing the ends of the rails in the joint bar, track bolts 22, 22 are inserted horizontally through the side members 7 and 8, the upright member 18" of the wedge piece and the webs of the rails. Said track boltsare provided with heads 22 and nuts 22?. When said nuts are tightened the uppermargins-of the side members 7 and 8 are drawn towardeach other and against the rail webs and wedge piece; a slight inward movement of the side members being permitted through the yielding of said side members, due to elasticity of the metal. In other words, the track bolts serve to hold said side members from spreading apart under the action of the wedge member after the latter is inserted in place. holes 7 anc 8 formed in the side members 7 and 8 for'the insertion of the bolts, will be preferably slightly elongated longitudinally of said members, in order to permit joint, embracing the features of construction described, the'ends 'of'the rails will be insertedinto thelongitudinal slot or'opening of the joint bar and brought into proper position relatively to eachother, and the wedge member will then be driven tightly into place, so as to clamp the ends of the rails rigidly and firmly between the, side members, and against thebase'plate of the joint bar. The track bolts will then be inserted and the nuts thereon screwed up so as to draw toward each other; the upper margins of the side members 7 and 8. By the clamping action of the said bolts, the wedge member will be held or firmly gripped between the rails and the surfaces of the jointbar in contact with said wedge member, so that said wedge member will- In the assembling of the parts of a rail The bolt 8 loosened through jarring action, independently of the holding effect of the spike 19. Moreover, by the clamping action of said track bolts, any spreading apart of'the side members 7 and 8 under the wedging action of the wedge member will be prevented, so

that the meeting ends of the rails willbe rigidly and firmly clamped in place and there will be no looseness in the joint. by reason of the elasticity of the metal of the side members themselves, or of the metal at the parts by which the said side members are joined to the side marginsof the base-plate. It is to be understood, however,that; aside from the feature of the track bolts, arranged in cooperation with the wedge piece to afford rigid connection of the rails with the joint bar, important advantages are gained by the use of the wedge-piece made as described, namely, with integrally connected base and upright members, for the reasonthat, when the wedgepiece is driven into place, it serves to force or press the base flanges of the rails downwardly against the base plate and at the same time to press or clamp the webs of the rails against the opposing side memher- 7, while at the same time, th,e wedgepiece itself, by reason of the rigid and unyielding connection of its base and upright members, or of its angular cross-sectional form, possesses a considerable degree of longitudinal stiffness or rigidity, and therefore materially aids in holding the ends of the rails in alinement with each other.

As a further improvement, I have pro vided, in connection with a joint bar or joint plate adapted to be rigidly clamped or secured to the meeting ends of the rails, anchoring means comprising an anchoring member adapted to be buried in the ground, and a tie rod 26 connecting said anchoring member with the joint bar. As illustrated, the anchoring member 25 consists of a piece of wood, such as one-half of an old tie, and the tie rod 26 is provided with a loop member 27 which extends around the anchoring member, or through which said anchoring member is inserted. As shown, the tie rod is flexibly connected with the loop member by means of interlocked eyes or rings 26, 27 on said parts. For detachably connecting the tie rod 26 with the joint bar, the vertical flange 17, on one end of the base plate 6, is provided with an apertured lug 17 engaged by a hook 26 on the adjacent end of the said tie rod.

lVhile an anchoring device made as described may be used for holding the rail joint and rails from being moved or shifted either laterally or endwise, the same is shown in the drawing, as applied for the purpose of holding the joint bar and rails from being shifted endwise in one direction. For this purpose the anchoring member 25 is shown as buried in the ground at some distance horizontally from the adjacent end of the joint bar, and the tie-rod 26 is shown as extending in an inclined direction from the from endwise movement either by the shift ing of the entire track or by the shifting of the rails on the ties. Such an anchoring device will be especially applicable in cases where there is a tendency of therails to creep ormove endwise under the action of passing trains on inclines or grades; it being well understood that while trains pass always in one direction onsuch an incline or grade, the rails tend to creep or move toward the lower end of the grade. When the joint bar is held from endwise movement by an anchoring device made as described, any tendency of the railstoshift or move endwise in the joint bar will be resisted by the contact of the track bolts (which closely fit in the holes in the rail-webs), with the ends of the bolt-holes in the side members 7 and 8. As an additional means of preventing any endwise movement of the rails relatively to the joint bar, the latter may be provided, as shown in Fig. 3,with a stop member or lug 23, made integral with and rising from the base plate 6, and adapted to engage a notch 5 formed in the base flange of one of the rails at the meeting ends of the latter. If an anchoring device made as described, be arranged with its anchoring member at one side-or the other of the joint bar, it will hold the oint bar and the rails from shifting sidewise under the lateral pressure of the flanges of the wheels on the rails, due to the centrifugal action of trains passing around curves at high speed.

It is to be understood that the devices illustrated may be variously modified with respect to details of construction without departure from the spirit of my invention and I do not, therefore, desire to be limited to the specific features of structure and design illustrated except so far as the same may be pointed out in the appended claims as constituting parts of my invention.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a rail-joint, the combination of a joint-bar consisting of a horizontal baseplate for supporting the rail-ends, and integral, longitudinal side members extending inwardly over the base-flanges of the rails and upwardly at the sides of the rail-webs, one of said side members conforming on its inner surface to the shape of the rails and the other of said side members having its inner surface spaced from the webs and base-flanges of the rails and being longitudinally inclined on its inwardly and downwardly facing surfaces, each of said side members being provided with elongatedbolt holes adapted to register with the bolt holes in the rail-webs, a tapered wedge-piece consisting of integrally united base and upright members shaped on their inner surfaces 'to conform to the base-flanges andwebs-of-the rails and inclined on th'eir outwardly and upwardly facing surfaces, said wedge-piece being provided with elongated bolt holes adapted toregister with the bolt holes in the rail webs and the side members of the joint bar, a transverse arm on the larger end of said Wedge-piece and extending outwardly therefrom andin'posi tion for contact with wardly over the base flangesof the rails and" upwardly at the sides of the rail-webs, said side members 1 being substantially shorter than "the length-of the base-plate, one of said "side members conforming on its inwardly and downwardly facing surfaces to the shape of the railsand the other having its inner and-downwardly facing surfaces ist'er w-ith the bolt holes of the rail; Webs and the joint bar, a transverse arm on the-larger end of the wedge-piece, 'eXtend-' ingoutwardly therefrom with its lower surfacein position for contact with the top'surface of "the base-plate, said arm being provided with a's'pike-hole, and track bolts inserted through the bolt holes of said side members,the rail-webs, and the wedge-piece.

"Tn testimony, that I claim the foregoing as my invention I aflix my signature in the presence of-two witnesses, this 11th day of February, A. D. 1913.

' "CHARLES CALVERT LAMB. 'Witnesses: EUGENE C. WANN,

F. ANTHONY.

Copies \ofthispaten't may beobt'ainefl (for fivecents each, byaflflressing the Commissioner of Patents, i Washington-3330; 

